SM UB-88 was a German Type UB III submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy (German: Kaiserliche Marine) during World War I. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 26 January 1918 as SM UB-88.^{[Note 1]}

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UB-88 alongside USS Bittern at Pedro Miguel Panama Canal, August 1919
History
German Empire
Name	UB-88
Ordered	6 / 8 February 1917[1]
Builder	AG Vulcan, Hamburg
Cost	3,654,000 German Papiermark
Yard number	104
Laid down	February 1917[2]
Launched	11 December 1917[3]
Commissioned	26 January 1918[3]
Fate	Surrendered 26 November 1918, sunk as target 3 January 1921[3] at 33.5984°N 118.2448°W / 33.5984; -118.2448
General characteristics [3]
Class and type	German Type UB III submarine
Displacement	510 t (500 long tons) surfaced 640 t (630 long tons) submerged
Length	55.52 m (182 ft 2 in) (o/a)
Beam	5.76 m (18 ft 11 in)
Draught	3.73 m (12 ft 3 in)
Propulsion	2 × propeller shaft 2 × MAN-Vulcan four-stroke 6-cylinder diesel engines, 1,085 bhp (809 kW) 2 × Siemens-Schuckert electric motors, 780 shp (580 kW)
Speed	13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph) surfaced 7.4 knots (13.7 km/h; 8.5 mph) submerged
Range	7,120 nmi (13,190 km; 8,190 mi) at 6 knots (11 km/h; 6.9 mph) surfaced 55 nmi (102 km; 63 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
Test depth	50 m (160 ft)
Complement	3 officers, 31 men[3]
Armament	5 × 50 cm (19.7 in) torpedo tubes (4 bow, 1 stern) 10 torpedoes 1 × 10.5 cm (4.13 in) deck gun
Service record
Part of:	Flandern I Flotilla 12 June – 4 October 1918 II Flotilla 4 October – 11 November 1918
Commanders:	Oblt.z.S. Johannes Ries[4] 26 January – 15 February 1918 Kptlt. Reinhard von Rabenau[5] 16 February – 11 November 1918
Operations:	5 patrols
Victories:	14 merchant ships sunk (31,076 GRT) 2 merchant ships damaged (10,135 GRT)

Close

She was built by AG Vulcan of Hamburg and following just under a year of construction, launched at Hamburg on 11 December 1917. UB-88 was commissioned early the next year under the command of Oblt.z.S. Johannes Ries.^[2] Like all Type UB III submarines, UB-88 carried 10 torpedoes and was armed with a 10.5 cm (4.13 in) deck gun. UB-88 would carry a crew of up to 3 officers and 31 men and had a cruising range of 7,120 nautical miles (13,190 km; 8,190 mi). UB-88 had a displacement of 510 t (500 long tons) while surfaced and 640 t (630 long tons) when submerged. Her engines enabled her to travel at 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph) when surfaced and 7.4 knots (13.7 km/h; 8.5 mph) when submerged.

UB-88 was surrendered to the United States on 26 November 1918 in accordance with the requirements of the Armistice with Germany. She was refurbished and did an exhibition tour in 1919 from New York, down the East Coast, and up the Mississippi River before passing through the Panama Canal and touring the West Coast as far north as Seattle, Washington.^[2]

After having all useful parts and salvage stripped from her,^[2] she was sunk as a target on 3 January 1921 in waters off Los Angeles County, California.^[3] The propellers were saved and placed on display in the city of San Pedro but were stolen in 1923 by metal thieves and were never recovered.^[2]

The wreck of the vessel was found in July 2003 using publicly available sonar data from the Pacific Seafloor Mapping project. She sits upright approximately 7.5 miles (12 km) south of the entrance to the Port of Los Angeles at a depth of 190 feet (58 m). The outer hull has corroded revealing the inner pressure hull. Divers have entered the wreck and found the interior to be almost completely bare. As she was given a special commission to the United States Navy, she is protected by the Sunken Military Craft Act.^[2]